Of course, first you must understand what kief is and why you’d want to press it…!
If you’re looking for what I call the “goodies” (THC, CBD, and the other cannabinoids) from the cannabis plant, the most concentrated amount of them are on the tiny, stalk-like trichomes or resin glands found on the flowers. These trichomes are effectively filled with the goodies, so they are very strong, and when collected, they are called kief (when compressed greatly, it’s called hashish).
You can collect kief in large commercial quantities by using a combination of cold temperatures (which makes the trichomes brittle) and solvent (butane or alcohol) or very cold water and “bubble bags”
The problem with loose kief is that basically the only way of using it is to sprinkle it on something, such as some cannabis you’re going to smoke or vaporize, or perhaps into some milk for instant canna creamer. But if you have a kief press, you can turn out little hard pucks of solid kief, which can be smoked or saved for a special occasion.
So without further ado and by special Ently permission, here is the wonderful instructions on how to make your own personal kief press, by reddit user dugbyrump…at no cost whatsoever!
Cool article. I just happened to find your website and I am glad I did. I will have to try this at some point. I appreciate you sharing your secrets with us. If you have a chance check out my blog at veganicvision.com where I talk about sustainable (vegan and organic) gardening as well as cannabis politics in WA state. Peace and Stay Lifted!
don’t use regular paper: it absorbs THC. use magazine paper/glossy paper if you are going to use this method. the best way to press kief/pollen is with your fingers. wash your hands and sanitize your fingertips with 91% rubbing alcohol. press and roll into a ball until you’ve reached your desired size. the better the pressed kief the higher it will bounce off of a flat glass surface. dont lose it tho!
if youre worrie about paper absorbing thc, you shouldnt roll it in your hands because skin also absorbs thcc
If skin absorbs thc… it is still going into your body. Doesn’t seem like a waste to me.
thc cannot be absorbed into your skin in a way that will get you high, it gets in the creases of your fingerprints and definitely goes to waste. first guy was right. heat is generally necessary to activate thc, and it is pretty strictly fat soluble.it just sits there on your fingers. definitely dont roll it with your hands thats stupid and wasteful,
All I can say is that, when I first started making Canna Caps, I got so high from touching the infused oil while filtering it that I was dropping the capsules. Now I wear gloves every time.
Except THC requires heat to activate it…
How much heat?? I mix the kief from my grinder and throw it into plain yogurt for a quick high, no need to heat or activate anything. The kief binds to the fat in the yogurt and whatever heat is involved is due to internal body heat once it hits my stomach. Essentially, your viewpoint is wrong buddy.
Lol stop talking out of your ass bro.
OK, let’s not all get disagreeable. Phil is right; regular (noncalendered) paper will absorb these kinds of particles. And it’s also true that you can get high through your skin, but is that a bad thing? 🙂
Ehh, don’t think you’ll be getting high ‘through your skin’ considering the THC has to bind with fat to be digested. “Old Hippie”, my ass. Fact is, you’re going to lose much more kief with your hands then you will using this method.
So, your stated opinion beats my actual experience of having it happen? I don’t think so. Nothing is “digested” through the skin, for starters. But feel free to remain a legend in your own mind.
Good one, O.H. That made my morning.
Obviously people who think that has never harvested fresh bud. Even wearing gloves, we definitely noticed a high-like feeling just from cutting the buds up when we harvested my buddy’s 10’x10′ medical grow tent a few months back.
Yes because noooobody uses THC salves, THC infused ointments which are applied to the skin.
I never doubted salves would work, but even I was amazed how fast and effective the salve was at relieving pain. Like a natural “rub a535” that gets you lifted as well.
I don’t “think” you’re a physiologist or biochemist. True THC is fat soluble, that is why you need an oil, fat or alcohol to extract it from the plant. But guess what your skin is covered in. Oil. Guess what forms the outer barrier to your body’s cells, phospholipids (lipids being fats, phospholipids being fats with a phosphate). Like a drop of food colouring in water, a lipid soluble compound will find its way through your body (with assistance of emulsifying compounds in your blood too) to your liver where it will be converted into the psychoactive compound. Granted if you have a very sedate lifestyle there will be a lot more fat for that THC to diffuse into, and your liver won’t have any reason to break fats down.
An essay could be written in response to your comment, but stoner nerds have lots to do.
amazing. good idea. note: don’t roll paper too tight on pencil, roll it snug but not too loose.
one puck that size maybe .3 inches thick got me 4 bong tokes.
Very ENThralling 😉
I’m so glad I’m not the only one who saw that!
tried this and it workled great!! thanks man !
Nugs and hugs!
Wow!
That was pretty amazing! 🙂
Woah, totally made my night! Thanks kief masters.
Tried this exact method with some “shaky” hash as well, whenever people saw either of the little pucks, they went nuts. I just used the eraser of another pencil to push out the hash and I was able to reuse the tube multiple times, the most I was able to fit was a .5 . This method is so simple I was kicking myself for days after seeing for not thinking about it first, so cheers Old Hippie.
Just tried this method, works great. thanks old hippie! why drink and drive when you can smoke and fly!
I dont think its a proper way to press it since its very easy to fail if you know what i mean ‘nam sayin’? Look at the picture, if you push it down too hard youll end up with broken paper cylinder and good stuff all over
Well, if you do anything wrong, it could potentially go bad, right? So do this over a piece of paper just in case. Nugs and hugs!
Hi. Is this in anyway used like the Rick Simpson oil to cure cancer? I have a brother with a 8.3 cm mass in his liver and in be ducts.
Sorry, but completely different like apples and oranges. Don’t fall for one of those oil scammers though, the best way is to make it yourself.
Hey Old Hippie! I’ve been smoking for the better part of 12 years and recently bought a grinder with a kief collector on the bottom. Have been amassing quite the pile of pollen now, and was hoping to find an easy (and cheap) way to make my kief pressings. After searching high and low for a viable solution, I read your article and have decided to save my money and try out your method.
Who needs to spend money on a pollen presser when you can do this! Being in a South American country where ALL drugs are frowned upon (except evil alcohol of course), one cannot simply find these products. This will be perfect, thank you so much! Happy tokin’ 😀
Gracias, y nugs y hugs!
You are the man.. Why didnt I ever think of this.. LoL
Thanks OH
Thank you! Nugs and hugs!
howzit old hippie just another old school 67 toker from hawaiian isl. thanks to the hippies and returning vets intro to the marijuana pakalolo seeds. simplicity is the tool. live well maluhia [peace]
Just the idea behind this press gave me some ideas of my own. I like yours, but the product is smaller than i would like. I used 2 quarters for my press, I had a handy little pill bottle just big enough for them to sit in, and just pressed evenly between them. If anyone tries this, drill a small hole on the bottom of the pill bottle to make getting your keif out less of a hassle.
Nice idea, thanks!
Would it still work if you used two regular pencils that arnt exactly round? Or 2 colored pencils or something and just put the tape over those?
This is great! Thanks Old Hippie, will be trying this! Peace
i read this and immediately tried it. it works, but i have one warning: its a bitch to get the second pencil to fit into the paper wrapped around the first one. it definitely works as advertised, but that particular step can be a real bitch
This is great! worked really well and ripped a couple pucks in my pipe. Got real high real fast! thanks!
Glad you liked it! Nugs and hugs!
Gotta agree with Old Hippie as far as transdermal effects of THC. I made tincture and used gloves, but still managed to get some on my skin and it was a crazy body high. Like, I had to lean against the kitchen counter.
Um instead of glossy paper or regular paper maybe you can cut and use wax paper??? I love weed and all you trying to figure out who wasted what or how much was absorbed and who got high and who didn’t doesn’t sound like laid back easy going stoners. Who fucking cares if someone make a ludicris statement of absorbing keif through their hand and getting stoned….now if it was lsd…yeah you probably will trip…lol
As everybody’s grandma knows parchment paper is what u use to bake and press doesn’t stick like wax paper or melt
thanks saved me 10$ on a pollen press i guess
https://www.amazon.ca/Formax420-Aluminum-Pollen-Press-FORMAX420/dp/B015GO0SWY/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1495004114&sr=8-4&keywords=pollen+presses
Take a 1/2 inch pvc coupling, and drop a nickel in it. The coupling has a stop preformed in the center of the coupling that will hold it in place. Fill with kief, top with another nickel, then tap with a hammer and a punch. I use a small socket that is smaller diameter than a nickel. Boom, you’re done and it only costs 50 cents for coupling and 2 nickels!
Sounds very cool, thanks!
Would love to pick your brain about a few things. Old Hippie dm me if you can. Got a bunch of rosin questions I’d like to ask
We don’t really have “DM” on Beyond Chronic, but please use the Contact page if you want to email me.